This is a gorgeous character read set in the gorgeous sounding island of Corfu, primarily now when Ava is manipulated in returning to the island she fell in love with as an eighteen year old, this time with her own (almost) eighteen year old daughter. This leads to a summer of reflection both about herself, her past and her own family which is fabulously narrated. It’s a great look at how parents affect their children and also about letting go of your own child. The relationships between the characters are complex but so well thought out making for a wonderful read.

I simply adore Isabelle Broom’s novels. No matter where they are set, you find yourself instantly transported there and immersed completely. You can almost smell the food, feel the warm breeze on your skin and the sand between your toes. Her latest novel, The Summer Trip is set on the beautiful Greek island of Corfu. Having visited there a number of times myself I could get a real sense of being on the island with the characters. The novel follows the story of Ava. It’s been eighteen years since Ava was on Corfu. She had never forgotten what happened on that trip or who she left behind. Now she’s returned, single and estranged from her family with her seventeen year old daughter Rosie in tow. The life she dreamed of on the island is now being lived by her younger sister Mattie and as Ava returns to the island, she knows she will have to face the person who broke her heart.

This book is glorious and I loved it book from start to end. It’s certainly packed full of family drama and has some great characters. It’s a feel good, heart warming read that I will be recommending to everyone and certainly worth more than 5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley, Hodder and Stoughton and the author for the chance fe to review.

Romance, greek sunshine, dilemmas, people searching for answers......all there. What we get here is an added layer of family trauma, lost love, forbidden passion and a secret from the past to shake them all.

I always look forward to going somewhere with Isabelle Broom and her escapist books and this is a lovely one to travel with. Dark drama with plenty of sunshine and hope too. There are some serious family and friendship drama here and it does get quite dark at times but Isabelle being the great writer she is, deals with that as eloquently as she does the sunshine and Greek travelling aspects.

Recommended!